Purchasing and licensing

This is for anyone who makes purchases of hardware, software, content and services from vendors.

Introduction

Anyone who makes a purchase in the Libraries on a regular or irregular basis must be aware of and understand the need for accessibility in what is purchased. The core and specialized materials below will ensure a base level of knowledge. Anything acquired should be available to all, regardless of their ability.

From the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI):

Accessibility is about ensuring that digital technology is usable by people with disabilities. Checklists, standards, and laws are important tools to help achieve accessibility — yet sometimes they get the focus instead of the fundamental goal of accessibility: meeting the needs of disabled people in the real world. Accessibility is an important aspect of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

And further, from Section508.gov:

…being “accessible” should be more than adhering to standards. To ensure you’re buying the most accessible solution and achieving your accessibility goals, you must research products and know how to communicate your requirements to vendors.

…make this easier by committing to accessibility and usability in your digital strategy, and embed this mindset into your procurement process.

Weighing privacy, security, risk and change management, cost, functionality and content, et cetera against accessibility does not serve business needs or its users. Accessibility concerns are embedded in and directly affect many other factors. As this Forbes article points out, lax accessibility leads to human error, which increases risk beyond inaccessibility. Accessibility is not a “nice to have” feature. The last decade has seen an increase both in people with disabilities and accessibility-related lawsuits. Equal access is a legal right and must be afforded the same level of scrutiny when making purchases.

Core skills

Go through the different sources to learn about each topic.

• Negotiating contracts
  • Accessibility lesson from the SPARC ONEAL Contracts Negotiation curriculum
  • Guide to Negotiating Accessibility in E-Resource Licenses (PDF) from TRLN
• Understanding VPATs and ACRs
  • Digital accessibility: a Best Practice Guide for U.S. Librarians (PDF) from Springer Nature
• Digital accessibility auditing
  • Digital Accessibility as a Core Competency for E-Resources Librarians in Serials Review

Other general sources

Check out some of these great additional resources:

• Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) Library Initiatives Standardized Agreement Language
• BTAA information on accessibility language
• Communication Matters: How to Talk to Technology Providers about Accessibility from PEAT
• Library Accessibility Alliance e-resource vendor testing

Return to digital accessibility skills landing page